degrassifandomcom-20200223-history
Talk:You Are Not Alone/@comment-3575890-20140510151620
This was posted on Live Journal, and I feel it is so very applicable to so many female characters in fandoms: Any female character who is as capable and unusually talented as the male characters is a Mary Sue. Any female character who develops new skills over time is a Mary Sue, no matter how she learned those skills or how strong her motivation to do so. Yes, how dare Dany be as capable and strong and influential as the male characters on this show. How dare Emma possess otherworldly abilities comparably as powerful as that of a male character's. Any female character who is not as capable and unusually talented as the male characters is weak and uninteresting. Any female character who has bad things happen to her is just trying to be the center of attention. Does this even merit an explanation?! If she ever complains about those things, she's also whiny. Yes, how dare Cersei question the fucked up patriarchal system that consigns her to a life she does not want and prevents her from having the liberties and freedoms as her male counterparts and oppressors that she so desires for herself Any female character who pursues a male character who initially rejects her is either predatory or pathetic. Remember all of the shit Clare, Bianca, and Zoe used to get for this? (Any male character who pursues a female character who initially rejects him is either charming or a tragic woobie.) Remember all of the praise and glory the males got for doing the same to their female counterparts? Any female character who rejects a male character who is beloved by fans is cruel and heartless, whether or not she has any interest in him herself. Oh uhhhh, Maya Matlin anyone? Any female character who lacks serious character flaws is too unrealistic to be interesting. Sorry Grace, you're just too damn sweet, considerate, and thoughtful. Nobody likes a nice goody two shoes unless they have an appendage between their legs and are devastatingly attractive. Any female character who has serious character flaws is unlikable because of them, even if beloved male characters have the same or equivalent flaws. If women are not paragons of perfection 24/7, then they're just bitches, right? However, the majority of criticisms of her will ignore those flaws entirely in favor of calling her a slut or a whore. ''' OH HELLO BIANCA-MOTHERFUCKING-DESOUSA, ELENA GILBERT, AND KATHERINE PIERCE (and the rest of the fictitious female population) '''Any female character who actually has multiple relationships in canon is a slut or a whore. Yes, how dare these characters not be tied to one single male for the rest of their lives. It's infinitely more important whether a female character is a slut or a whore than whether she commits actual crimes or kills people. Who gives a fuck if these women are capable of extreme depravity? We hate them because they're promiscuous and sexually deviant Notice the repetition of some of the same female characters being used to exemplify multiple points. Says a lot, doesn't it?